


Ghost in the World, Ghost with no Home

by Saturn_Knight



Series: Modern AU [1]
Category: Hollow Knight (Video Games)
Genre: (Temporarily), Alternate Universe - Human, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Biker Gang, Gen, Modern AU Ghost's backstory, Rated T for language, The Knight is Called Casper, The Knight is baby in this, The Wastes outside Hallownest, accidental adoption, and for Violence, buckle in boys this is gonna be a fun ride, mentions of human experimentation
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-04
Updated: 2021-02-04
Packaged: 2021-03-16 02:01:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,797
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29199546
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Saturn_Knight/pseuds/Saturn_Knight
Summary: During a heavy sandstorm a young child escapes the confines of the Abyss Laboratories and enters the Wastes beyond the country of Hallownest. They get picked up by a gang and is raised by the Wastes creed."Never trust anyone, one wrong move can mean death."Alternatively: A Humanized Modern look at how Ghost may have survived out in the Wastes.
Series: Modern AU [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2119500
Kudos: 20





	Ghost in the World, Ghost with no Home

**Author's Note:**

> Hello there dear reader! Welcome back, or just a welcome if you haven't read the other part in this series! This is basically a prequel to Hope you feel Single tonight. I wanted to see how the Wastes could be translated into a Modern setting and came up with basically the stereotypical "Wild West"  
> Ghost will be called Casper until later chapters (you'll see why) but that's more of a nickname than an actual name. They are also a very teeny, malnourished 6 year old in the start of this, but I'm going to jump every few years till they're 18 after the second chapter. Hope you enjoy this quick read!

They had been running for as long as they could remember, running from darkness into a dreary landscape, sand and sharp rocks cutting blisters into their little feet. The dirty hospital gown they wore flapped in the wind behind them like a flag, hindering their movement. The sands buffeted their small frame, stinging their eyes and filling their lungs full of grit. 

They finally tumbled down into a small valley, the exhaustion getting to them. With a wheeze they started coughing, hoping to expel the sand they breathed in, their efforts being rewarded with small droplets of dark blood. They blinked, coal eyes blearily watching as the stains were sucked up into the ever shifting sands. With a small whimper they collapsed, their vision blacking out as they fell to the mercy of the Wastes. 

And mercy they received

They woke to stale air and the sound of roars nearing their prone body. They were too exhausted to right themself and run as the roars grew louder. Their eye’s squeezed shut, accepting of their impending doom. But when they expected death, they heard the roars subside and softer sounds replace it. 

“Ey boss,” they could hear something speak, “Why’d we stop here? Next town’s another half-hour!” 

“Shut ya ass up Lenny!” another voice rang out, “I saw something in the sands give me a minute.” A crunching sound approached them. They flinched, body seizing as they tried to be as still as they could, sounds close to them meant danger and pain. They didn’t want any more hurt than they already had. 

“Holy shit it’s a kid!” the thing breathed out before the crunching sounds sped up right to their location. Suddenly the world spun as they felt a hand grab onto the back of their gown, lifting their body up roughly. Their vision swam and in a blind panic they started kicking weakly, arms flailing as they tried to make the thing holding them let go. 

A string of curses left the thing holding them upright, “Hey I’m trying to help you! Stop shaking sand on my jacket, it'll never get out!” The thing waited for them to tire out, their breath coming out in gasps and coughs as their adrenaline wore off. Finally they hung their head, exhausted at their fruitless endeavor.

“There we go kid,” the thing huffed, “Now what’s a lil thing like you doing out here, it’s a ways to the nearest town, and there ain’t any hospitals in it.” They blinked, what  _ were _ they doing out here? 

And what was a hospital? 

When the thing received no reply it groaned, “C’mon kid I ain’t got all day,” when they stayed silent the thing shook them, “At least tell me your name?” Their head rose to finally meet the face of the other thing, person, it was a person. They tried cracking their mouth open to try to recreate the words the person spoke, but all that left their mouth was a puff of air that shifted into a wheeze. 

The person sighed, “Hey it’s ok kid, maybe you got desert lung, don’t force yourself to speak if you can’t,” with a hum the person continued, “How about I give you a name for now? Can’t keep calling ya kid.” The person gave them a once over, shrewd eyes taking stock of their frail form. 

With a small aha the person proclaimed, “How about I call ya Casper? Your skin does look pretty pale, plus you got white hair,” the person gave them a toothy sneer, an incisor missing, “You’re like a lil ghost!”

They-Casper, blinked at the person, if that made the person happy and wouldn’t hurt them, then they’d be Casper. They nodded and the grin widened before the person started dragging them towards the group on the now revealed road a ways to the left of their valley. 

“Alright then lil Casper, let’s get you to the town,” the person said with an air of finality, “Let’s see if anybody lost a sick kid, and if nobody did, well then you're just gonna have to ride around with me ‘n my boys.” Casper stumbled as they tried to keep up with the person, their legs screaming in protest at the quick movement. 

“Rory!” the person barked, “We got a newbie in our gang! Casper’s gonna ride with ya,” the other person named Rory jolted to attention before digging into the sidecar on his cycle, bringing up a helmet. Casper could hear a mumbled “Yes Laureen.” as the two neared the motorcycles. 

Once Laureen bundled them into the sidecar, draping her biker jacket over them like a blanket, and Rory placed the comically large helmet atop their head the cycles roared to life. Casper cringed at the loud rumble of the machines, barely able to hear Laureen scream out a signal to ride. Suddenly they felt the car they were in lurch forward as Rory accelerated and started speeding along the asphalt. 

The ride to the unknown town awed Casper, what they could see through their squinted eyes was just sand, but the feeling of going as fast as they did was exhilarating. Even if they were scared out of their mind, every bump the cycle went over filled them with fear that they might just tumble out, body smashed out on the road. So they elected to hunch further into the sidecar, gripping the leather jacket like a lifeline. 

Sands gave way to run down buildings, some boarded up, some with faded signs full of gibberish to the small child as they could not read. As more buildings appeared the bikers slowed down to a cruise, taking up the entire roadway. Suddenly the motors stopped on the side of one rickety establishment, a neon sign showing a bottle pitifully flickering out in the heavily clouded sky. 

“Alright Cas, we’re gonna see if you belong to anybody here,” Laureen muttered as she unhooked her helmet, “Might as well get ya to a doctor or at least get some first aid as well.” Rory grabbed a hold of them by the waist and lifted them out of the sidecar, their form swaying at the sudden movement, not used to sitting for such long periods. Looking up they only now registered three other bikers that had driven with them, one of them noticed their gazing and sneered. 

“The hell you lookin at eh?” he spit out, still astride his motorcycle. Casper ducked their head back down, clutching the jacket tighter to themself. The jacket practically hid their small body, their matted white hair being the only thing peeking out. 

Laureen whirled around to face the biker who had hissed at them, snarling back, “Leave em alone Lenny, they’re a fucking kid all they do is stare ya idiot!” She planted a hand onto her hip, a pistol holstered on her belt. “Now I’m gettin real tired of you barking around like you the boss or something,” With a glint in her eyes she sneered, “You know what, I should put some lead in your mouth, maybe then you’ll shut up!”

With wide eyes Lenny sputtered, “No boss, s-sorry boss, I’ll shut my mouth.” He shrinked back, knowing Laureen’s threats weren’t empty ones. She harrumphed, satisfied that her scolding worked before turning back towards the bar entrance. 

“Alright boys we’re not here for drinks so best stay put ok?” Laureen said, “We can break into the sheriff’s office right after I deal with the kid.” The other two bikers mumbled out affirmatives, relaxing and stretching out their legs after the ride. 

Rory looked down towards the bundle of leather standing next to him before patting the top, startling the young child. Once he got Casper’s attention he asked, “Do you want me to carry you? You don’t even have socks on your feet, must’ve hurt when you were in the desert.” Casper gave it some thought, they didn’t really like it when they had been manhandled into and out of the sidecar. But then again their feet did hurt and they were tired, so they nodded, bracing themself to be picked up again. 

In a gentle motion Casper found themself cradled in the larger man’s arms, their knobby knees and back supported by his hands as they both moved towards the bar entrance. Casper relaxed as the light grew dimmer, but the stench of smoke and iron filled their lungs and they hacked. Rory gave their back a few pats through the jacket to help with their coughing spell. 

The inside of the bar was dark, darker than the overcast sky outside in both its atmosphere and patrons. A few drunkards were slumped over their drinks at the counter, some almost passed out and some already there. The rest of the bar was either whispering amongst themselves or playing pool at the far end. 

Laureen stood in the middle of the bar, hands folded over her chest, “Any of you sorry lot lost a toddler recently?” She commanded the attention of the entire bar, those lucid enough at least. At first she was met with silence, only a wet cough breaking the quiet. 

A man guffawed at the pool table, “Well shit Laureen, does it look like any of us have kids?” The rest of them burst into cackles as her face scrunched into annoyance. With a growl she stalked over towards the bartender, “You don’t happen to know where a doctor lives do you?” 

The barkeep shrugged, “We had one a while ago, but then gangs like  _ yours _ started harassing the town, last I heard Doc Al moved to Steel Gulch.” Laureen cursed under her breath before turning back to where Rory and Casper were. 

“We gotta head out, Steel Gulch is a three hour ride and the sandstorms’ll be kicking up tonight.” Rory nodded at her before exiting the bar, Casper in tow. As he set the toddler down a  _ bam!  _ resounded out from inside that got a sharp flinch from the child. Swiftly exiting the bar Laureen was cackling as she holstered her gun. 

“Please don’t tell me you shot somebody Boss.” Rory grumbled as she hopped on her bike and kicked the engine to start. She turned back towards him and gave him a crazed grin, “Maybe, it’d be one less piece of shit in the world! Plans have changed, we’re heading to Steel Gulch! Let’s ride boys!” With a whoop she tore down the main street, the other three bikers following suit. Rory gave a hefty sigh before starting his own engine, already hearing the infuriated shouts of bar patrons nearing the door. 

Looking down at Casper he snorted out a mirthless laugh, “Welcome to the gang then kid, we sure as hell are in for a ride.” 

**Author's Note:**

> So there you have chapter 1! My updating is sporadic at best, but I'm going to try to keep thins one as a quick breeze through to hopefully keep myself from procrastinating. If you enjoyed this one, feel free to leave a kudos or even a comment to help fuel my creative fire!
> 
> If you have any questions feel free to drop by my tumblr [here](https://www.tumblr.com/blog/saturno-sol)


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